United Nations Population Fund Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem is facing allegations of ethical compromise, conflict of interest, nepotism and sexual harassment at the UN agency.
A letter seen by DiploBrief to Moncef Ghrib, the Director of UNFPA’s Office of Audit and Investigation Services accuses Dr Kanem of serial harassment, intimidation and abuse of staff members.
The letter says that numerous staff members have reportedly endured a systematic pattern of harassment, abuse of authority, and intimidation by the Panamanian, who is among the highest-ranking women at the United Nations and the first Latin American to head UNFPA.
The letter states that her actions stemmed from perceived slights or disrespect towards her predating her tenure as Executive Director.
“Those affected have faced various repercussions, including being pushed out of the organization or subjected to functional demotions, leading to significant distress and mental health issues. Some of the individuals reportedly impacted include Ms. Dawn Minott, Dr. Kanem’s former Special Assistant, whose experience of harassment, bullying, and intimidation in the hands of Dr. Kanem compelled her to take over six months of mental health sick leave.
“Additionally, Dr. Kanem’s former Personal Assistant, Ms. Ada Cardenas was forced into early retirement due to similar issues. There are reportedly several others that have similar experiences,” the letter says.
Among the allegations against Dr Kanem is conflict of interest and nepotism, in which concerns have been raised regarding contracts awarded without due process to her son, Mr. Mandela Gregoire, without proper disclosure of their relationship, raising questions about nepotism and favoritism.
“An instance is the patronage of Mandela for activities and services provided during the 50th Anniversary celebration of UNFPA as well as in the lead up to, and during the ICPD Summit of 2019 in Nairobi, for which he benefited handsomely.
“Of serious ethical concern is that Mandela is a Cinematographer whose website flaunts a UN Laisser Passez. He also has UNFPA on his clientele list, along with records of documentaries that he has produced for the United Nations one of which is titled ‘Improving Girls Success Rates in Schools in Tanzania’, produced while his mother, Dr. Kanem was the UNFPA Representative in the country,” it says.
Additionally, the whistleblowers claim there are instances of preferential treatment and privileges extended to Gregoire at various UNFPA country offices allegedly with the active knowledge of his mother. These include accommodation, chauffeured cars, cellphone and access to VIP locations, sites, services and patronage that are normally acceded to UNFPA by authorities and governments.
“These were perks received in support of his personal visits to such countries. This raises further questions about abuse of office and nepotism within the organization. Some of the referenced country offices are in the Caribbeans, East Africa and West Africa,’ the letter says.
In one of the documents seen by DiploBrief, Gregoire was booked Alisa Hotel in Ghana on December 25, 2019 to January 6 at a rate of 840 Ghanian Cedi ($54) per night, with business source being indicated as “United Nations Foundation”.
It is important that answers that will ensure accountability and transparency be demanded by all and sundry. Ethical leadership must be non-negotiable in global leadership especially within the United Nations System
Dr Kanem is also accused of benefitting personal friends through her office, in which the whistleblowers allege that her personal connections have influenced contract and consultancy awards within UNFPA, compromising the integrity of the organization’s procurement processes.
“Mrs. Kanem reportedly has a list of personal friends who are benefiting from UNFPA in high volume contract and consultancy awards that are incommensurable with the task awarded and incompatible with the objective evaluation of the required candidates for the tasks.
“Such practices of contract awards that are lacking in transparent disclosure and justification constitute a clear conflict of interest and undermines the integrity of the organization’s procurement processes. Examples of these friends and acquaintances of Mrs. Kanem who have benefited from contracts and grants from UNFPA of recent are Ms. Susan Davis, Ms. Leila Hessini and Mr. Djibril Diallo. There is no evidence of disclosure of their personal relationships prior to their awards, as required by the organization’s policies,” they say in the letter.
They add that some friends and relatives attended the Nairobi Summit of 2019, all sponsored by or benefiting from UNFPA in one form or the other.
“This sponsorship and benefits extended to individuals who lacked substantive relationships with the respective Country Offices and who, by objective criteria, would not have qualified for such sponsorship. Directives were issued from Dr. Kanem’s office to include them on the list of sponsored attendees, thereby raising valid questions about preferential treatment and the misuse of organizational resources for personal gain,” the letter says.
She is also accused of extensive travel, which they say not only contravenes UNFPA’s ethical standards but also disregards the UN’s admonition for due attention to carbon emissions and the reduction of travel by officials.
“She has travelled to at least 15 countries in the first 4 months of 2024, and there is no doubt that If tallies are taken, she will likely be found to be one of the most traveled UN personnel worldwide, further exacerbating the environmental impact of her actions. The action (or reaction) of the UN to this issue will be a good indicator of the seriousness or otherwise of the UN about issues of carbon footprints et al. It is even more egregious considering that it is alleged that many of Ms. Kanem’s travels are relatively personal in nature but masqueraded as official trips paid for by the organization,” the letter says.
On sexual abuse and harassment, reports suggest that Kanem has engaged in sexual advances towards staff members and retaliated against those who rebuffed her, creating a hostile work environment. “This is a particularly serious matter that needs to be expeditiously treated,” the letter says without providing further details.
UNFPA has zero tolerance for all forms of sexual wrongdoing, whether perpetrated against a recipient of assistance or a coworker.
They say that Dr Kanem’s misuse of organizational resources for personal travels and social engagements represents a flagrant violation of UNFPA’s ethical standards and demands thorough investigation.
“Current challenges confronting the global community requires that taxpayers resources are managed in the most accountable and ethical manner. The attention of donor countries has also been brought to the unethical and blatant abuse of authority/mismanagement of their taxpayer resources by Dr Natalia Kanem, the UNFPA Executive Director.
“It is important that answers that will ensure accountability and transparency be demanded by all and sundry. Ethical leadership must be non-negotiable in global leadership especially within the United Nations System,” the whistleblowers say.
In response to the letter, Ghribs’s office said the report would be reviewed carefully by ID/OIOS, and a decision to be made as to the “most appropriate method” of addressing the information that provided.
“In that review process, we will determine whether our office or another office is more suitable to address the matter you have raised,” the email said.
